Traditionally, 35 mm type photographic film (hereinafter called 35 mm film), whose photographic picture plane is 24 mm long by 36 mm wide in dimension, has widely and universally prevailed. In addition, a film scanner has also been well known, which is capable of converting images on the aforesaid film into digital image signals and then feeding the digital image signals into a computer.
For example, published Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 5 (Heisei 5 or the year of 1993)-244349 discloses an image-digitizing device in which a device for digitizing the images on the 35 mm film is proposed. This device can read and digitize images provided on both slide film and strip-like negative film, and then can feed the digitized images into a computer. The slide film is a sheet of film which is cut every single frame. The slide film is held in a slide mount. The strip-like negative film is a sheet of film which is cut every six frames.
A monthly magazine "Popular Photography" (October 1994, page 8) introduces a new photo system, i.e., an advanced photo system, which is applicable to new film that is different from the prevalent 35 mm film. In the new photo system, a small-sized, film cartridge contains a roll of unused film or developed film, including a leader portion. Such film is smaller in width than the 35 mm film. The unused film or developed film is taken out of the film cartridge at the time of photographing, or printing, and image reproduction. As a result, users are typically precluded from taking a direct look at a strip of the aforesaid film.
The construction of the film cartridge applicable to the new photo system is seen from, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 5,047,794 (corresponding to Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 4 (Heisei 4 or the year of 1992)-237043 which discloses a film cassette (cartridge) with a lock-out means for preventing exposed film from being loaded therein. The above film cartridge prevents a partially or substantially exposed film cartridge from being inserted into various cameras.
The aforesaid new photo system-adapted, small-sized film cartridge would be applicable to a film scanner as well if being designed to contain a roll of developed film in a manner that the film is pulled out of the cartridge, whenever necessary. However, the image-digitizing device shown in the aforesaid Patent Application No. 5-244349 is of the type for picking up images on the 35 mm film. That is, the device is constructed in a manner unapplicable to the aforesaid small-sized film cartridge, and is thus impossible to read images on the cartridge-contained film.
In addition, no proposals have been made yet to a film scanner device in which the film contained in the new photo system-adapted cartridge is pulled therefrom to read images on the film, and then image data is input into a computer.
The present invention is produced to overcome the aforesaid inconveniences. Thus, an object of the present invention is to propose an image input device capable of reading images on different types of film, such as the above-mentioned 35 mm film or the new photo system-adapted film, and then feeding image data into the computer.